Automatic grain weigher



A. C. VAN HOUWELING AUTOMATIC GRAIN WEIGHER Filed April 11. 1922 Patented Aug. 11, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR C. VAN HOUWELING, OF PELLA, IOWA, ASSIGNOR TO GARDEN CITY FEEDER COMPANY, OF PELLA, IOWA.

AUTOMATIC GRAIN WEIGHER.

Application filed April 11, 1922. Serial No. 551,715.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR C. VAN HOU- WELING, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Pella, in the county of Marion and State of Iowa, have invented a certain new and useful Automatic Grain VVeigher, of which the following i a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide an automatic grain weigher of simple, durable and inexpensive construction of the class that is designed to be attached to the grain elevator of a threshing machine.

A further object is to provide a grain weigher of this class in which the entire weighing mechanism is self-contained and may be readily, quickly and easily attached to any ordinary elevator without in any way altering or changing the shape or size of the elevator proper so that the weighers may be sold as attachments and may be applied to elevators by unskilled workmen.

A further object is to provide improved and simplified means for automatically actuating the deflector for directing the grain into the opposite side of the hopper upon a downward movement of the hopper caused by the weight of the grain in one side thereof, said means being so constructed and arranged that it will operate with a minimum of friction and wear and may be readily and quickly adjusted so that it will operate in either direction when a certain predetermined weight of grain is placed in either side of the hopper.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combination of the Various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a side elevation of the upper part of an elevator having my improved weigher applied thereto.

Figure 2 shows a front elevation of same with parts broken away to show the dumping valves, and

Figure 3 shows a sectional View on the line 33 of Figure 1.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, I have used the reference numeral 10 to indicate that part of the elevator shown. This elevator is of the ordinary construction commonly used on threshing machines and a detailed description thereof is deemed unnecessary.

My improved device comprises a scale beam and hopper, and means for actuating the discharge valve of the hopper, and in order to adapt it to be applied to elevators of any ordinary size or s ape I provide scale beam having two parallel sides 11 spaced apart far enough to stand on opposite sides of the upper end of an elevator. These beams are connected at their front by the cross piece 12 and at the rear end the sides are preferably brought together and provided with suitable indicating marks and designed to receive an adjustable weight 13. For supporting the scale beam I provide two supporting brackets 14; that may be secured to the sides of the elevator, and which are provided with suitable knife edged bearings 15 upon which the two sides of the scale beams are pivotally supported.

The hopper proper comprises a body por tion 16 having a vertical central partition 17 therein to divide the hopper into two com partments. At the top of the hopper the sides thereof are extended upwardly and inwardly at 18 and then downwardly and inwardly at 19, and at the bottom of the hopper the sides thereof are inclined inwardly at 20 and then straight downwardly at 21, the bottom being open.

Secured to the inclined portions 18 at the top of the hopper are the brackets 22 which extend upwardly and are mounted upon the knife edged bearings 23 in the sides of the scale beam By this arrangement it is obvious that no change whatever need be made in the construction of the elevator and it is also obvious that my device be attached to elevators having somewhat different dimensions because the distance between the two sides of the scale beams may be made great enough to readily receive elevators of different widths. The downwardly and inwardly inclined parts 19 at the top of the hopper will direct all of the flow of grain into the hopper even though the discharge end of the elevator should be relatively wide or relatively narrow.

In order to prevent swinging motion of the hopper when it is not in use I provide a bar 24 pivoted at one end to a lug 25 on the hopper and pivoted at the other end to a lug 26 which is fixed to the elevator, and this bar is extended substantially horizontally. By this arrangement the har does not in any way interfere with the up and down movement of the hopper when weighing grain but when no grain is fed into the hopper the hopper normally stands in its elevated position, and the bar 24 braces it against swinging moven'ients in any direction.

The dumping valves comprise a shaft 27 mounted in suitable bearings 28 at he trout and rear of the hopper near its lower end and mounted upon this shaft below the pan tition 17 are the dumping valves 20 arranged substantially at right angles to each other and extended downwardly into the part 21 of the hopper. These valves are so positioned that when one of them is at its upper limit 01" movement, as shown at the right in Figure 2, its outer end will engage the part 1 of the hopper and close the bottom of the right side of the hopper, and when in this position the other valve will extend ali'nost straight downwardly and permit the tree discharge of the contents of the other side of the hopper. hen the movement is reversed, the contents ot the right side of the hopper may be discharged and the bottom of the hopper at the ett side will be closed.

For deflecting grain from one side of the hopper to the other I have provided near the top of the opening a shaft 30 monntevl in bearings 31 at the trout and rear ot the hopper, and fixed to the central portion ot the shaft 30 within the hopper is the deflector valve 32, so shaped and arranged with relation to the top of the hopper that when it is in position in one limit of its movement its upper end will be below and outside the low end ot' the inclined top 19 of the hopper, so that all grain discharged into the top of the. hop in will pass into one side of the hopper, then when the deflecting \alve is reversed in position all grain will be discharged into the opposite side of the hopper.

For causing this deflector valve to operate in unison with the dumping valves I have fixed to the shaft 2? of the dumping valves an arm 33 which is extended upwardly and laterally, and to the shaft 3 I have llXQ an arm 3% which is extended upwardly and laterally. These two arm-- re ri'aniected by a link By this arrangement it is olivious that when the dumping valves move from one position to the other the deflecting valve will be given a corresponding movement from one limit of its movement to the opposite one.

For the purpo e or automatically operating the dumping valves when a pro-determined amount of grain has been deposited in the hopper, I provide the following mechanism. Mounted upon the bracket 31 at the rear oi the hopper are two weighted arms ext-ended horizontally in opposite d rections. Each is provided with a lag 3? at it lower end and with a pin 238 at its end. A rod 39 is provided at. its lewcr end with a slot 40 into which the pin 33. is inserted. The upper end of the rod is .aehed to a stationary part oi the elevator Frame and I preferably pr on the elevator frame a bracket ll. ft bolt 4-2 is e);- ided through this bracket and provided 1th an adjusting nut t?) at the upper end,

a at) 'ne lower end of the bolt receives and dumping ulve to move downwardly whereupon the arm 44 swings to the opposite limit ot its movement and elevates the op arm 36 and becomes engaged by the pposite lug 3?, thus locking the dumping a a e in its opposite position.

11 practical operation it is obvious that wini my improved weighing device the enire de ice may be made in l'actory and shipped to the user and readily and quickly applied to any ordinary elevator by unskilled workmen lsecause the WOIllHlOH need only attach to the elevator the brackets 1- that support the scale beam, the lug 26 which snnports the bar it and the brackets ll wiiieh support tne rods 39. and this device may be attached to elevators which vary to a consinerahle extent in dimensions.

is the grain is delivered through the dis charge end of the elevator. all of it will enter the hopper beranse of the downwardly and inwart i inclined parts 10 thereof, and all of the grain will be deflected to the proper ide of the h pper because the deflecting valve is in such position that together with the adjacent one ot' the inclined p: if of the hopper it will deflect all of the grain to one side of the hopper. 'hen the weight oi the grain in the hopper is S11f iicient to tOHDUZl ?dilit'i the weight on the scale beam. then the hopper will bodily de cend a slight distance.

During this movement one of the weighted arms 36 will have its outer end held stationary by the rod 39, whereas its inner end, which is attached to the hopper, will move downwardly with the hopper and this will cause the arm 44 to be released, whereupon the weight of the grain on the dumping valve will cause the dumping valve to swing downwardly with considerable force, and this will move the arm 44 to its opposite limit of movement.

On account of the slot 40 in the rod 39, the arms 37 on the side to which the arm 44 is being swung, will be at its downward limit of movement and the arm 44 will strike its lug 37 and slightly elevate the arm 36 until the arm 44 passes outwardly be yond the lug 37, whereupon the arm 36 will drop and lock the arm 44 in its position at its opposite limit of movement, and this will close the dumping valve on the opposite side of the hopper.

During this movement of the dumping valve, the arm 33 on the opposite end of the shaft 27 will be actuated to reverse the position of the deflecting Valve. These movements are made very rapidly on account of the pressure of the grain upon the dumping valve when the dumping valve has started to open, and the movements are therefore positive in their action as well as rapid.

In order to cause both sides of the hopper to automatically dump when exactly the same amount of grain is contained in each the operator need only adjust the nuts 43 until the dumping valve starts its movement from either side when the same amount of grain is contained therein, and after this has been once adjusted it is not necessary to change the adjustment.

I claim as my invention:

1. In an automatic grain weigher, the combination of a support, a scale beam pivoted to said support, a hopper supported from said scale beam and open at its bottom, dumping valves in the bottom of said hopper including a pivot shaft, an arm fixed to the shaft of the dumping valves and extended upwardly, two weighted arms pivoted to the central portion of the hopper and extended outwardly, each having a lug formed thereon to be engaged by said arm on the shaft of the dumping valves, two rods pivotally supported at the upper ends from said support and extended downwardly, each having a limited sliding movement with relation to one of the arms that are provided with lugs, whereby when the hopper moves downwardly the arms that are provided with lugs will move upwardly to release the arm on the shaft of the dumping valves, for the purposes stated.

2. In an automatic grain weigher, the combination of a scale beam, a hopper mounted thereon and open at its top and bottom, a vertical partition in the hopper, dumping valves below the vertical partition said dumping valves including a pivot shaft and a deflecting valve above the Vertical partition, means for connecting the dumping valves with the deflecting valve for causing them to operate in unison, an arm fixed to the shaft of the dumping valves and extended upwardly, two weighted arms pivoted to the central portion of the hopper and extending outwardly, each having a lug formed thereon to be engaged by said arm on the shaft of the dumping valves, two rods pivotally supported at their upper ends and extended downwardly, each having a limited sliding movement with relation to one of the arms that are provided with lugs whereby when the hopper moves downwardly the arms that are provided with lugs will move upwardly to release the arm on the shaft of the dumping valves, for the purposes stated.

3. In an automatic grain weigher, the combination of a scale beam, a hopper mounted thereon and open at its top and bottom, a vertical partition in the hopper, dumping valves below the vertical partition and a deflecting valve above the Vertical partition, means for connecting the dumping valves with the deflecting valve for causing them to operate in unison, an arm fixed to the shaft of the dumping valves and extended upwardly, two weighted arms pivoted to the central portion of the hopper and extending outwardly, each having a lug formed thereon to be engaged by said arms on the shaft of the dumping valves, two rods pivotally supported at their upper end and extended downwardly, each having a limited sliding movement with relation to one of the arms that are provided with lugs whereby when the hopper moves downwardly the arms that are provided with lugs will move upwardly to release the arm on the shaft of the dumping valves, and means for vertically adjusting said rods independly of each other.

ARTHUR C. VAN HOUWELING. 

